A new gameplay idea: Lord Generals

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|Sith|PiperGuest

Subject: A new gameplay idea: Lord Generals Thu Jun 19, 2014 12:18 am

Hey everyone, I hope you're all well. This is my first time posting in IDE and I hope I'm not offending anyone by doing so! The reason I'm writing is because I came up with an idea for a new way to play R2 tonight, and I wanted to get your feedback.

Typically when people play multiplayer games with 4 or 6 total armies involved, the various armies square up against each other and try to defeat the opponent in front of them. Oh, there might be the occasional crossover attack or sending of cav, etc., but for the most part people confine their attentions to their corner of the battlefield and try to win while hoping that his teammates are doing well.

I'd like to suggest a new way to fight these battles. The key is the introduction of a new character, or Lord General. The Lord General brings only one unit to the battle - a general unit. He doesn't engage in actual fighting; he stays behind the lines, out of harm's way. His role is to unite the actions of the 2 or 3 armies under his command in the field. The LG is there to have a strategic overview sense of things, to issue orders to the sub-generals about how to maneuver, where to attack, when to retreat, when and where to do recon, etc.

Certainly the sub-generals would not be mere robots or puppets. In the heat of battle the Lord General cannot make all decisions, and the sub-generals would have to react to specific threats or opportunities in the way that seems best to them. But on the whole, the LG would have master-control over all the armies, dictating their movements and the general direction of battle.

The situation would be helped by (1) having the armies widely separated at the beginning of battle, and (2) choosing maps randomly, so that unexpected terrain problems would pose challenges for the armies and especially for the LG.

Again, the LG would not engage in battle. He would be there only to provide comprehensive direction for the armies under his command, in such a way as to most likely bring about victory.

This idea has the merits, I think, of introducing a new kind of player or character (the Lord General) and introducing a level of unified strategic thinking that is currently not present in multiplayer R2 games.

Such a system would thrive best within clans, where people know each other and trust each other, and have good ideas about who would best be suited for that kind of role. The sub-generals would have to obey the LG's orders as far as possible in order for this to work, and the bonds of clan - the trust - would make it most likely that this would actually happen in game.

I've spoken earlier tonight with a few people about it, just testing the waters. VOD Khalid thought it was a great idea; Atilla thought it would be awesome for tournaments, where clans would fight clans (perhaps Bo3 rounds, where the LG stays the same, but different sub-generals can or must be brought in in new battles), and Indypride thought the idea had merit.

My question to you is: what do you think? Would you be interested in playing in such a battle, either as the Lord General (focusing entirely on strategic and tactical control and the giving of orders) or as a sub-general (focusing on implementing orders, while using your own judgment about how to deal with sudden or unforseen complications)? My hope is that this type of play might introduce a new layer of complexity into the game that would make it more interesting and varied.

The magic question, again, is: what do you all think? Honestly I'd love to hear from as many of you as possible. I'm seriously considering approaching the BETA folks to see if they might be interested in sponsoring a tournament (I suppose this would be a 'fun' tourny) with these constraints in place.

So - what do you think? Clearly some tests are in order, but what do you think of the general idea? (no pun intended...)

Ofcours you don't offend us by writing here. You are very welcome to share your ideas.

I think this idea is wonderfull! It is actually very historical accurate. In real battles the general would also just watch from a hill and see his troops fighting. I would love to see the idea been worked out.

My only concern about this are some practical issues. How are you going to check if teams follow the Hierarchy of the system etc?

I would say every team gets one extra player that just helps the overview of the game, but not has a specific leadership role. That would simplefy things. (that is just my opinion)

If you wish to contact BETA, IDE has a few beta members. I think Jonasnee will be interrested in this matter. I also think a lot of other members of our clan would be interrested in supporting this project and are willing to help work this out.

Hi. My concern is that there won't be much difference between this and a normal team game. That's because there are no interesting map features or dojos that would make a team cooperate if they want to get them.

I think the introduction of lord general would be much more needed if each player in a team can only take one part of an army (infantry, cavalry or skirmishers). This way it would be much harder for a player to be effective by himself and a general would be very useful.

@Yarben: you are right that it's possible for sub-generals not to obey the Lord General - the hierarchy might be ignored. That's why I think this will work best within clans, where people trust each other more, and have a sense of who is best for strategic command.

Also, you are right that having an extra player (who isn't in command) helping to give an overview of things would make it easier in the sense that people wouldn't worry about someone giving them orders. But amongst clanmates and friends, it would be possible, and I think cool, to give someone that honor. It could help to develop a new kind of skill in the person who plays the LG. :-)

@Stilzkin: you may be right about the game being somewhat similar, although I doubt that would be the case for the LG himself...

Your idea about players just controlling one type of unit is very interesting, though - definitely worth a try.